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Laurier expert alert: National Indigenous Peoples Day

Waterloo – National Indigenous Peoples Day is June 21. Wilfrid Laurier University has a number of experts on topics related to the First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples of Canada. Below is a list of experts available to comment:

Gus Hill, associate professor and associate dean in the Indigenous Field of Study at Laurier's Faculty of Social Work, is an expert in Indigenous health and wellness, community capacity building, community-based research and wholistic social work practice. (The Indigenous Field of Study uses “wholistic” because it indicates helping the whole person.) He is Anishnaabe from the Batchewana First Nation. Contact:ghill@wlu.ca or 519.884.0710 x5279.

Miguel Sioui, assistant professor of Geography and Environmental Studies, is an expert on Indigenous land-use conceptions and management. He has researched “responsibility-based thinking” in Indigenous groups across the Americas, including in Canada. He is of Huron-Wendat and Colombian descent. Contact:msioui@wlu.ca or 819.639.1789.

Alex Latta, associate professor in the departments of Global Studies and Geography and Environmental Studies, is an expert on Indigenous rights and natural resources, particularly water. He is available for comment on environmental and resource issues in Indigenous communities in Canada, particularly in the Northwest Territories, and in Latin America, particularly Chile. Contact:alatta@wlu.ca or 226.791.3197.

William Quinton, associate professor of Geography and Environmental Studies and director of Laurier’s Cold Regions Research Centre, is an expert on the hydrology of cold regions, permafrost and peatlands. He does much of his research at the Scotty Creek Research Station, south of Fort Simpson, NWT, where he maintains longstanding relationships with the Liidlii Kue First Nation and Jean Marie River First Nation. He is available for comment on relationship building and community engagement work involving researchers and Indigenous communities. Contact:wquinton@wlu.ca, 519.884.0710 x3281 or 519.635.0210.

Allen Jorgenson, professor and assistant dean at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, is an expert on comparative theology and theologies of religious pluralism, including how contemporary theology can be informed by Indigenous worldviews. He is available for comment on reconciliation efforts between Christian denominations and Indigenous peoples. Contact:ajorgenson@wlu.ca, 519.884.0710 x3619 or 519.880.5516.

Andrew Spring, PhD, research associate, Northern Canada Knowledge Networks, is an expert on food sustainability who is leading research in the Northwest Territories focusing on access to country food, traditional livelihoods, climate change and development pressures. He is available for comment on food in the North, research collaborations with Indigenous communities, and facilitating knowledge-sharing between elders and youth. Contact: aspring@wlu.ca.